Sunshine
by HBob
Summary: Just a little Spashley vampire love story. Forbidden love, and all that.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One – Demon or Human**

You know those things that go "bump in the night" that your parents warn you about, well I am one of those things. We're in the media so much these days, I'm surprised that we haven't been truly found out yet. I'm talking, of course, about vampires. I know what you're thinking , I know. It's 2009, the "Year of the Vampire". How many more vampire stories can one take? But the thing is, we're real. Some of what pop culture has said about us is true, and others, well, let's just say that one shouldn't believe everything that they hear. My name is Ashley Davies, and I was born in 1909 and I died in 1926. I was 17 years old and my world changed forever. The 'who' isn't really important right now and I'm sure you could guess as to the 'why'. The 'how', well, that's one thing that the media got right. A surefire way to make a vampire is for the vampire to drain their victim, and then feed them their own blood. It doesn't always work. These things aren't an exact science, you know. But more often than not, a vampire is born. And that's what happened with me. And now here I am, 83 years later, still hiding in the shadows amongst the rest of the undead.

Sure I have some vampire friends. I even have a family. We're not the soulless creatures that Dracula has made us out to be. Well, not all of us anyways. But we do have a demon inside of us. We do need blood to survive. There's nothing that anyone can do to stop or change this, or believe me, I would have found a way. I live off of animals to survive. It's not as bad as one may think. It's no different that eating tofu if you are a human. It just takes a while to adjust to the taste. I still fight my animal urges from time to time. Emotions make it harder sometimes – lust and anger are the worst because they are the most animalistic emotions one can have. But luckily, I rarely tap into those emotions. I just live my life like any normal teenager, with a few exceptions.

I go to school. I can't help myself, I love being around the humans. They intrigue me. It reminds me of my own humanity, and that's something that I need to keep in my mind at all times. How can I attend school, you may ask. Well, another vampire myth is that we burst into flames with the tiniest of sun exposure. We can only last outside for a while though. The sunlight weakens us over time and so most vamps choose to just come out at night. Truth is, I love the sun. It warms me. And lying in the sand underneath the sun is an amazing feeling, and one which I hope to never lose. The one downside for attending school is that I need to limit my direct contact with the humans. I can never get to close to anyone, for fear that they will learn my secret.

The thing about secrets, you see, is – the harder you try to hide yours from the people that you love, the harder you push those people away. I've learned that all this accomplishes is a broken heart and hurt feelings for everyone involved. And why would I knowingly put someone through that? So I find it best to just stay a loner. It's not very hard, and in fact it's something that I've grown quite accustomed to in my many years on this Earth. You see, when you live my life, if you could even call it living, it's best to keep everyone at an arms reach. That way, I stand very little chance of hurting anyone. That thought is all and well, but never did I imagine that I would meet someone who would change my entire existence.

A cool breeze blows in the morning air and I pull my jacket closer as a reflex. I inhale deeply the scents around me, basking in the smell of the sea. The beach is truly one of my favorite places. The waves can make anyone feel alive and happy, and I find that I usually begin and end my days in my favorite spot underneath the pier. As I walk closer, I notice someone sitting on the sand near my spot. I sharpen my eyes and see blonde hair blowing in the wind. I breath in as I move closer and inhale her intoxicating scent. Strawberry. She still has her back toward me as I creep closer, trying to learn more about the breathtaking creature before me. I hear low sighs and notice that her body is shivering. Her pulse is racing as a sob wracks through her body. I can almost feel her pain. I close my eyes and breath her in again, taking in everything about this young girl. I do not recognize her scent. She must be new to the area. It's a small town and I've made it my duty to know everyone who is in it. The blonde suddenly stands and my body is in full alert mode. I move quickly to the shadows and crouch in the bushes. She stands and faces the water a moment before turning around and heading toward the road. I follow her with my eyes, memorizing her features. She's stunning. Her blonde hair and pale complexion give her an angelic appearance. Her eyes are downcast, so I cannot see them. And I find myself disappointed. She moves to the road and starts to walk towards the school. I watch her go from the shadows. I track her to King High, my school, and watches as she walks up the front steps. She stops as her hand reaches the door and she turns around toward my direction. I'm hidden and I know that she can't see me, but I inhale sharply anyway. She stands there for a moment, scanning the trees, before shaking her head and entering the school.

I move from the shadows and remove my sunglasses from my eyes. Her scent drifts further away from me and I find that my body yearns for me to follow her. A slow fire builds underneath my skin as I sniff the air once more, finding her scent amongst the others, and savoring it. She awakens feelings and reactions in my body that have lain dormant for years. My eyes open and I can feel the hunger pulsating in my stomach and my throat. Whether it is the demon or the human in me, I don't know yet. But I do know one thing – I must meet this girl.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two – Nice to Meet You**

I move through the halls of the school, avoiding all contact with the humans. The girl's scent lingers in the hallway and I fight the urge to track her. My thoughts are interrupted by a peppy voice beside me. I smirk as I turn and face my sister.

"Hey Ash!" Kyla chirps, bouncing on her heels. I swear, she never stops moving. Kyla is not my sister by conventional birth, but she is my sister by choice. You see, Kyla was turned shortly after me, and we found each other. Her sire abandoned her and she was left to die. Why any vamp would take the effort to create one of it's own kind, and then turn around and leave it to starve is beyond me. But she and I found each other. She clung to me for a while. I was older and she was scared of what she had become. She grew on me, and now I trust her more than anyone. She is truly my closest confidant.

I smile at the bouncing brunette. "Hey Ky. Why are you in such a good mood?"

She grins at me, flashing a perfect set of white teeth. She jumps slightly to her left and stands directly in front of me. "It's the first day of school, Ash! Why wouldn't I be excited?"

I grin at her. "Because you've been attending school for 70-odd years. I would think that this would be boring to you by now." She stares at me like I'm insane. "Plus, this is a small town. We pretty much know everyone here."

As if on cue, 2 new faces enter the hallway. I smell her coming my way and my eyes widen. Kyla notices this and turns around. "Oh yeah, see. That's what I'm excited about. New students!"

I turn to face the younger girl. "What do you know about her?" A smile crosses my face as I watch the young blonde walk down the hallway. She is with a boy who must be her brother, considering they have the same pale skin and blonde hair. He walks with more confidence than the girl, his head held up and his eyes set straight ahead as he moved down the hallway. His eyes are blue and I find myself wondering if hers are the same shade.

"Those are the Carlins. Spencer and Glen," Kyla explains. I notice her watching my expression as I stare at the duo.

"Spencer," I whisper. I smile. "Spencer Carlin."

Spencer holds her notebooks close to her chest as she walks up to a locker. She glances as her locker combination on a small sheet of paper and then slowly opens the locker. She takes off her coat and puts it inside the locker. She closes it and turns to move down the hallway. Glen put his arm over her shoulder and leads her away. Once again she stops walking once she reaches the end of the hallway and turns her head around. She looks around the hallway, confusion etched on her face. I see her eyes for the first time and if I needed air to breathe, I would be short of breath right now. Her pale blue eyes are beautiful, and I know that I could spend forever mesmerized by them. She searches the hallway with her eyes, shaking her head slightly and her lips open slightly as she bites her lower lip. This action draws my eyes to her lips and I cannot look away. My vision is interrupted, however, when Kyla steps in front of me. I refocus my eyes on her and frown.

"Can I help you?" I ask her, irritation ringing in my voice.

She smirks at me, "Well, If I didn't know any better, I would say that you are staring quite intently at a human, Ashley." I don't respond, I just move my head around hers to watch Spencer again. To my great disappointment however, she was gone. I turn my attention back to my sister.

"I wasn't staring. I was just...curious," I explain. Kyla knows my feelings towards humans, and I know that she is itching to ask me about my curiosity with this particular one. I cut her off at the pass. "It's not often we get new faces around here. I just want to make sure that no one dangerous is in our town. You remember what happened the last time someone came here."

Kyla looks down. Of course she remembers. I almost regret bringing it up, but sometimes I need to make a point to her, a strong point, in order for her to drop something. And I didn't want her questioning my attraction to this young girl. Mostly because I didn't want to question it. I know, I'm a big bad vampire: why was I scared of some stupid little feelings about some stupid little human. A good question indeed. I get out of my thoughts and look down at Kyla, who's gaze is set at the floor. I sigh. "I'm sorry Ky. I shouldn't have brought him up. That was wrong of me."

She smiles instantly, "It's ok Ash. I shouldn't have questioned you." She stops speaking as the bell rings for class. She turns around and winks at me, "Even if you were staring at her." And with that she bounces down the hall toward her classroom. I shake my head at her childish nature, but can't help but smile as a result. I quickly grab my things from my locker and head toward my first class, hoping that Spencer Carlin will be in attendance.

As I enter the classroom, I know instantly that she's not there. I don't smell her sweet aroma and I frown, taking my seat in the back of the classroom. Math. After taking the same courses for so many years, I don't even need to pay attention to follow along and stay under the radar. My first five classes drag on and I find myself wondering if I would ever see Spencer up close. I passed her brother, Glen, in the hallway after the lunch break, but no sign of the younger Carlin. So now here I am, sitting in the back of the classroom preparing for another semester of English: hearing teenagers struggle through the words in Shakespeare plays and attempt to understand the overall themes in To Kill a Mockingbird. I find myself frowning at the idea of spending this semester in a classroom that doesn't contain the beautiful Spencer Carlin. But then – strawberries. I look up toward the chalkboard and there she is, standing right in front of me. I feel my senses awaken again to her as she talks quietly to the teacher. I can hear them, of course, he wants to her address the class and she's scared. She shifts her weight uncomfortably and looks around at the other students. Of course none of them notice her: not while they're busy on their cells before class starts. But I notice her. I notice everything about her. She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and bites her lower lip. Our teacher points toward the back of the classroom and I quickly look to the empty seat beside me.

Spencer walks slowly toward me, her eyes never leaving the ground. She puts her books on the desk and sits down, leaning her forearms on the desk as though she's trying to make herself as compact as humanly possible. I swallow deeply as the full force of her scent fills the air around me. She smells amazing. I can hear her heart beating fast and I find my own body reacting to her. This isn't a good sign. I should be able to keep the vampire in me under control, but she's setting off alarms inside my body.

"Um," a small voice says and I turn to face the blonde. "Are you, um, are you Ashley?"

Her voice sends shivers down my spine and I push to stay in control. "Yes," I respond shortly, trying to limit my exposure to her. This was a bad idea. I need to get in control. I can feel a bubbling beneath the surface of my skin as I become acutely aware of her heartbeat.

Spencer gives me a small smile, "O-ok, um, Mr. Andrews said that I should uh, I should share your book for this class. I guess they ran out or something," she laughs nervously to herself.

I cringe as I push the book toward her and our hands nearly touch, "Here, help yourself."

Spencer grins and looks at my face. I can see her eyes clearly now. The blue is endless. "Thanks, I'd hate to cause problems. Are you sure it's ok?"

I nod and then turn my attention toward the front of the class as the bell rings. I ignore her as she turns to face forward in her seat, shooting one last look in my direction. I hear Spencer sigh quietly and can see her shaking her head and muttering under her breath. I can feel the corner of my mouth turn up slightly as my superhuman hearing picks up her words.

"Nice to meet you Ashley".


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey everyone. Sorry for the ridiculously long wait between chapters. I had a ton of stuff going on, including losing a job and then getting a new one. So I apologize for my lack of updating. If you guys are still interested in this, I am a few chapters ahead in writing them, so I guarantee my posting will be more frequent, at least for a while. So please, let me know if the interest is still there, and if there's anything in my writing that you don't like. I welcome any and all criticism. Thanks!**

Disclaimer: I do not own the South of Nowhere characters, trust me, you'd know if I did because the show would still be on air. 

**Chapter Three - Smitten**

I leave class the instant the bell rings, ignoring Spencer as she tries to hand me my book back. "Keep it," I mutter under my breath as I bolt. That was the most excruciating hour of my entire existence. Her scent overwhelmed me, surrounded me, overpowered me. I could hear her pulse racing and her heart beating loudly as the teacher addressed her as being new to the school. I could hear the small sighs she emitted from her mouth as she listened to the other students talk. I couldn't stand the way she was making me feel; so out of control, so much like a predator. I see Kyla in the hall and I grab her arm, forcing her to follow me out of the school.

I hit the front steps and keep on walking, releasing Kyla's arm from my death grip. I can hear her following closely behind me, knowing well enough to keep her mouth shut until we were far from the school. We hit the forrest and walk deep into it and I finally start to feel like myself again. I stop and close my eyes, breathing in everything that surrounds me, trusting my senses to release Spencer's presence from their midsts. I turn and face Kyla, seeing the confusion and the worry etched into her face. I move closer and pull her into a hug, relishing the feeling of humanity that returns to my body. I pull back and look at her.

"I'm sorry," I whisper, shaking my head at my previous actions.

She takes my hand into hers, "Wanna explain what happened? I haven't seen you that..." She looks as though she's trying to find the right words, "primal in a while."

I turn my head quickly and stare at her. Could she really tell what I was feeling? Was I that obvious?

As if reading my mind, Kyla nodded her head, "Ash, your eyes were dark, almost black." I cringe, that's what happens when we feed, just another indicator of the monster within us. "And you were practically snarling when you grabbed me."

I shake my head, "I don't know what happened. I've never had that reaction around a human before." I release her hand and pull my hair back into a loose ponytail, fidgeting nervously with the rubber band as I do so. "I thought it was just my curiosity about her being a new student but, god, when she sat down next to me I was so overwhelmed I almost..." I couldn't even say the words; I couldn't say the one thing that I've been fighting against for my entire life.

"You wouldn't have," Kyla says strongly.

"How do you know..."

"Because I know you, I _know_ you Ash. You would never hurt someone. You would never tap into the primal part of you. You're too strong."

I shake my head and swallow hard, "But she smelled so...god...amazing doesn't seem to cover it. And she was shy and so nervous, and she tried to talk to me and, I was just so mean to her. I had to be," I explain, "I was so afraid to touch her, to be that close to her. God, she must think I'm horrible. I _am_ horrible." I stop my rambling to notice a smirk on Kyla's face. My anger starts to rise, there is nothing about this situation that is funny. "What the hell are you smiling at?"

Kyla's grin grows, "You sound like you're smitten. You don't sound like an animal right now. You're talking about her personality, and wondering what she thinks of you. You aren't talking about ripping her throat out and draining her dry..."

"I would never..." I start.

"My point exactly. Ash, whatever this girl is doing to you, you're strong enough to explore it. She might be stirring the beast inside you, but she's also stirring the humanity." I stare at her in confusion. "You and I go to school every few years because you think we should be around humans, so that they can help us remember what we once were." I nod my head in agreement. "But you've never really lived, Ash. You've never really interacted with them, or truly cared about any of them. You've just existed. This is the first time I've seen _you_. Do you realize what your face looks like when you talk about her."

I shake my head and wonder when I became so transparent.

"Spencer," Kyla says, and I can feel the corner of my mouth twitch. "Even her name makes you want to smile."

I nod slowly. How can I be so attached to someone who I've spoken less than 10 words to. Someone who knows nothing about me besides my first name. Someone who I know nothing about.

Kyla steps forward and pulls me into another hug, which I gladly fall into. "Trust yourself. Trust that you can do this, and explore these feelings. If it gets too bad, we can go away for a bit. I'll be by your side the whole time. Promise." We pull apart and I smile at my sister.

"What would I do without you Ky?"

"Be a shriveled, lonely shell of a person?" she says without missing a beat.

"Gee, thanks," I reply, "And I would never be shriveled." I give her a big grin and tighten my pony tail. "Now, lets go eat so that I can 'explore my feelings' a little better tomorrow."

Kyla bounces up and down slightly before getting into a runner's stance, "Race ya!" She takes off into the woods before I can even respond.

"Cheater!" I shout after her, as I chase the bouncing brunette through the forrest.

* * *

It's night now, and I'm walking along the coast of my beach. I feel must better since I've 'quenched my thirst' with Kyla earlier. I kick my feet slightly as I walk, barefooted, through the cold sand. I prefer the beach during the day, because of the warmth it brings me, but the night has it's benefits too. Because it's so chilly at night, people rarely come to the beach, meaning that I can be more myself; more vampiric, if you understand. I walk to the pier, to the exact spot Spencer was sitting just this morning, and I stand for a moment. Thoughts from this morning start to enter my brain: why did she move here, why was she crying, how did she seem to know that I was watching her, how can I make things right with her?

I shake my head and leave the spot, moving to the beach part underneath the pier. I spot a small fire and frown; I assume that someone had been camping earlier and I move towards it. How can someone be so careless as to leave a fire burning underneath a wooden structure, don't they know that...

My thoughts halt as I notice a body lying close to the fire, shivering underneath a blanket. I frown, "Bums." I move closer and suddenly am bombarded by the smell.

Strawberries.

Spencer.

I panic instantly, forcing myself to block out her scent. I'm fine, I can do this. Kyla's words repeat in my brain as I remember Spencer's small smile from earlier that day. I can feel the animal inside me. It was chomping at the bit this morning; urging me to sink my teeth into her. But now, I can feel it beneath the surface. And it's at bay for now. I slowly reopen my sense of smell to her.

It's easier than before, to breathe around her. I move closer toward her to test myself. Yes, easier. Kyla was right, I can do this. I smile, proud of myself. Proud that I passed the first test.

I can tell now, from where I'm standing, that she's asleep. I can also tell that she's freezing. Her heart is beating very slowly. My instincts, the vampire ones, fall by the wayside as the human in me realizes that Spencer is cold, too cold. She wouldn't last the night out here.

I stand over her and peer down at the sleeping blonde. She's shaking intensely now. Her lips are blue and her breath is coming out in small puffs. The fire is doing nothing to keep her warm. I tilt my head to the side as I watch her sleep for a moment. I had imagined that she would look peaceful, almost angelic when she slept, but she looks far from that. She looks troubled, upset. Her forehead is furrowed and her eyes are scrunched tightly together, as though she's having a nightmare.

I debate with myself for a moment. Can I actually be this close to her? Can I have a conversation with her? Can I make her a part of my life?

All questions are stopped, however, when a small, painful whimper is released from her mouth.

I never want to hear that sound again.

I lean down over her and shake her gently. "Spencer," I whisper. She stirs, but doesn't wake. "Spencer," I repeat louder, grabbing her shoulder and moving her more forcefully.

Her blue eyes shoot open and focus in on me. My brown eyes stare into her ocean blue eyes for what seems like an eternity before she speaks, confusion and panic ringing strongly in her voice.

"Ashley?"


End file.
